Chicago has 4 players make All-Star team

Jose Abreu is congratulated by Alexei Ramirez after hitting a solo home run during a June game. (Tom Szczerbowski / Getty Images)

It hasn't exactly been a season to remember for the White Sox or Cubs, but some stellar individual performances were recognized Sunday in voting for the All-Star Game.

Rookie Jose Abreu and shortstop Alexei Ramirez were selected to represent the Sox at the July 15 game in Minneapolis, while the Cubs had two players chosen, albeit one with an asterisk.

Shortstop Starlin Castro was voted in as a reserve by the players, as was starting pitcher Jeff Samardzija, who is ineligible to play because he was traded to the Athletics on Friday. Samardzija will be allowed to take part in all the festivities, one of seven A's players who will be on hand.

Abreu, with 27 home runs and 69 RBIs, is the fifth Sox rookie to make the team, joining Minnie Minoso (1951), Tommie Agee (1966), Carlos May (1969) and Ron Kittle (1983).

"I'm still a little in shock," Abreu said through a team interpreter. "It's the recognition of a lot of the hard work that I've put in here and we've put in as a team. It's a great honor."

Sox starter Chris Sale and Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo have a chance to make it in the Final Vote, the online ballot in which fans select the final member of both squads.

Sale's omission was perhaps the most glaring. He's 8-1 with a 2.16 ERA and is limiting left-handed hitters to a .121 average. But he lost out to eight AL starters.

The White Sox's Twitter account asked fans to vote for Sale in the AL vote and for Nationals second baseman Anthony Rendon in the NL vote, suggesting there's no love lost between the Sox's and Cubs' marketing departments.

Fellow Cubans Yasiel Puig of the Dodgers and Aroldis Chapman of the Reds will join Abreu and Ramirez, with Puig voted into the NL starting lineup by fans.

"I'm extremely happy with Jose ... going with Jose ... the fact that it's his first year in the league and he's setting records," Ramirez said through an interpreter. "But not just the two of us, but everyone (from Cuba), whether it's National League or American League. … I'm happy that our Cuban baseball, our level of baseball is being recognized here."

Castro, who made the NL squad in 2011 and '12, is coming off a career-worst season, making his selection by players that much sweeter. He's the third Cubs shortstop to make it at least three times, joining Ernie Banks (nine times at short) and Don Kessinger (six times).

"After that bad year last year, that's what we were looking for," Castro said. "Make this a good year and come back to that level. It feels awesome. Everyone in my family is happy too."

The Diamondbacks' Paul Goldschmidt was the runaway winner at first base for the NL, with the Braves' Freddie Freeman voted in by players as his backup, leaving Rizzo and the Rockies' Justin Morneau on the five-man Final Vote ballot.

"It's an honor to come down to the wire like this," Rizzo said. "But the other four players are deserving as well. So it will be fun."

There are 26 first-time selectees this year, including Abreu, Ramirez and Samardzija. Blue Jays outfielder Jose Bautista was the top vote-getter with 5,859,019 votes, while Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki led all NL players with 5,349,456.

Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter will start for the AL in his final All-Star Game, perhaps the only sentimental pick by fans.

Both rosters are packed, though on paper the AL squad appears to have more power (Mike Trout, Miguel Cabrera, Nelson Cruz, Bautista and Abreu) while the NL seemingly has stronger starting pitching (Clayton Kershaw, Adam Wainwright and Johnny Cueto).

Former White Sox left-hander Mark Buehrle, now with the Blue Jays, made the AL staff, while ex-Cubs third baseman Aramis Ramirez was voted in by fans as an NL starter. Former Cubs third baseman Casey McGehee, of the Marlins, is on the NL Final Vote ballot, and ex-Cubs prospect Josh Donaldson of the A's, acquired in the Rich Harden deal in 2009, will start for the AL at third base.

Orioles catcher Matt Wieters, out for the season after Tommy John surgery, was replaced as a starter by Royals catcher Salvador Perez, with the A's Derek Norris picked as a reserve. The Blue Jays Edwin Encarnacion, selected as a reserve, will also have to be replaced after suffering a leg injury Saturday.

Not many starters make an All-Star Game with only two wins, but Samardzija's 2.83 ERA in 17 starts for the last-place Cubs earned him a nod on the players' ballots. He won his first start with Oakland on Sunday.

Even though Samardzija won't get to play in the All-Star Game, the honor of knowing his peers voted him in should be more than satisfactory.